Community-run indigenous nurseries

Beneficiaries
People of the Roossenekal community.

Where?
Roossenekal, Limpopo Province

Why it was started?
One long-term objective of the project is to ultimately facilitate poverty eradication through skills development and job creation within an area. The project also aims to instil a sense of ownership among communities, and to empower them to develop their own community projects by using the skills and training they have received.

How was it done?
Umsizi’s community-run indigenous nursery strives to, firstly, develop skills in community members and thereafter develop a functional enterprise that is fully run by the trained individuals. Individuals are trained in indigenous plant propagation and plant identification, so that they are able to rescue plants from mining or construction areas. The propagated plants are subsequently used for landsite rehabilitation or for indigenous landscaping. The nursery includes the erection of infrastructure, namely, five green- and hothouses, which provide employment to community members. A market has been created as a local mine buys the plants for rehabilitation projects.